


Tangled Up

by Catatonica



Category: One Piece
Genre: Dressrosa Arc, F/M, Love Confessions, Marines, Mutual Pining, Post-Dressrosa, Reader-Insert, a bit of angst, come on Bastille needs more love, i just think he's neat, oblivious idiots in love, vice admiral!Reader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-06
Updated: 2021-01-06
Packaged: 2021-03-16 22:41:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28589718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Catatonica/pseuds/Catatonica
Summary: After the chaotic events on Dressrosa, you, a young vice admiral, are ordered to help clean up the mess and help capture the Strawhat Crew. You are only too happy to comply with this order, in high expectation of seeing your closest friend in the Marines again and finally being honest with him about your feelings.
Relationships: Bastille (One Piece)/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	1. If love's the gain

The moment the Primrose docked, you already jumped over the railing and landed with a leap on the wood of the bridge.  
"Tsuru-chan!" You rushed toward the Marine's camp, your white cloak billowing behind you in the wind. "Tsuru!"  
The older vice looked around when she heard her name, then caught sight of you coming toward her. You could see in her face that it hadn't gone as planned. Dressrosa was in ruins, pieces of buildings were scattered all over the city and clouds of smoke were rising. It was sad to see the city, once so vibrant, now in such chaos. The marines rushed through the camp, the alleys and all in all it was a huge mess.  
"You're here earlier than expected," Tsuru greeted you a little coolly, but you suspected it was because of the stress. Her three companions greeted you a little more kindly, but you kept an eye out for Issho.  
"Where is the admiral?" you asked Tsuru, "I expected to take orders from him immediately."  
"You're simply too early," was the elder's reply. "But you can make yourself useful in the camp until then. Help out a little."  
"And put band-aids on aches and pains?" you growled softly, but obeyed. The old lady was much more experienced than you, and even if bureaucratically you held the same title - you paid her respect.   
"Ma'am vice admiral!" You were met by two lieutenants who dutifully saluted you. A cool nod on your part and you straightened your shoulders.  
"Where are Bastille and Maynard?" you asked, "Surely at least one of them should be roaming around here while Admiral Fujitora is in town."  
"Vice admiral Maynard has followed the admiral on short notice, and vice admiral Bastille is still in the nearby hospital," one of the two lieutenants reported, clicking his heels obediently. "He is expected to recover soon."  
"Bastille was injured?" you immediately inquired, your stomach tightening. "Severely?"  
"With the help of healing devil powers, the skull fracture was quickly healed," you were further told. "However, he is not yet conscious."  
"What, a fractured skull! Where is the hospital?" you asked immediately and the lieutenant pointed to the west. You hurried off, your cloak blowing wildly in the rising breeze behind you. Faster and faster your legs carried you, until finally you were almost running. From the beginning you should have come with me to Dressrosa, you scolded yourself. You should have watched out for the red-haired idiot who, as usual, had acted far too temperamentally. Tsuru had already sent you a message saying that the navy had run into the 2nd leader of the revolutionary army. And of course Bastille had thrown himself into the fight to protect his men and hunt down the criminal - as he had done so many times before. But such serious consequences had very rarely followed until now.  
"Ma'am vice admiral-," you were greeted at the hospital, but you hurried past the soldier and intercepted the nearest doctor.  
"Where is Bastill- I-I mean, vice admiral Bastille?" you asked the startled doctor.  
"Second door on the right.", you got your astonished answer and already you let go of the poor, surprised medic to hurry down the hall. Without knocking, you cracked open the door and saw an astonished Bastille, who by all appearances was still a little dazed. He seemed to have just woken up, but that didn't stop you from giving him a good telling off.  
With one big step you were already at the bedside, grabbing a strand of his red hair and pulling him down to you a bit.  
"You idiot!" you sneered, ignoring his angry objections. "A fractured skull! And some nose of a lieutenant has to tell me that! How many times have I told you not to be so irresponsible!"  
"Let go!" he growled, pulling away from your grip. An angry, yet still somewhat dazed look from him caused your anger to subside somewhat.  
"I was worried about you!" you said emphatically, and he rolled his eyes. You rarely saw him without his mask, the last time must have been years ago. Good thing you were always prepared for emergencies.

"Here you go, you big idiot." From the inside pocket of your coat you pulled out a spare mask that you already carried around out of sheer habit - not as sturdy as his old mask, but that would do for now. That he always covered his face was a strange quirk, but you took him as he was. Ever since your days as young soldiers, he handled it that way, so who were you to question it now? You didn't care for his scars, but he seemed to hide them for a reason.   
"Are you in pain?" you asked, sitting down on the end of the bed - a little mollified at the sight of his bandages. He shook his head and his gaze had already disappeared behind the mask.  
"I can't believe it, I got the short end of the stick against some stupid kid," he growled and you couldn't help but grin.  
"Stupid boy is the second leader of the rebels, you knew he wouldn't just go down like that." An encouraging wink from you made him cross his arms in front of his chest irritably.   
"What are you doing here anyway?" he asked, and you swayed your head slightly.  
"Tsuru requested me since I was in the area anyway," you answered him, ignoring the tugging in your stomach when he asked you that. It's like he doesn't want you here just because his pride was cracked.  
Men...  
"Remember when you had to come visit me?" you asked him, barely able to stifle a laugh. "You hated it so much!"  
"You were awfully whiny though."  
"Hey! Mean!" Playfully indignant, you punched him in the arm but nodded. After the great battle of Marineford two years ago, Bastille had pulled you from the rubble of the battlefield with several broken ribs and some serious wounds. The thought of his concern still warmed your heart. Would he finally begin to notice your advances? Or did you need to be even more direct? And most importantly, what if he rejected you...?  
Out of the corner of your eye you noticed how he groaned slightly and worriedly you turned to him.  
"You are in pain after all." Your tone was a little reproachful, but at the same time gentler than he was used to from you.  
"Just a little headache, that's all," he admitted, and you moved a little closer to put a hand to his forehead. Irritated, he winced under your touch - again, your stomach tightened a little.  
"Well, you don't have a fever, anyway." You smiled sheepishly at him, but that died immediately when there was a knock at the door and you withdrew your hand.  
"Tsuru!" The surprise was heavy in your voice, as you hadn't expected the older girl at all.  
"Knew I'd find you here," she grumbled, giving you a knowing look. Embarrassed, you ducked your head, expecting a sermon on the duties of a vice admiral, but Tsuru beckoned you to her - you dutifully followed the gesture.  
"Now, why don't you let Bastille recover first? Make yourself useful at the base camp," she instructed you, and you nodded in agreement, waved a quick goodbye to Bastille, and were maneuvered out into the hallway by her. Her stern, motherly gaze rested on you for a second until she finally sighed.  
"You should finally tell him. Prancing around each other like that never did any good," she scolded you gently.  
"Tsuru-chan!" you hissed, trying to keep her volume down, worried that Bastille might hear your conversation. "Please, not so loud!"  
"Coward." Tsuru walked past you, leaving you no choice but to make your own way to the base camp and see if Issho was done with his tour of the destroyed city.

"Go, go! Move it!" you shooed the soldiers around you from A to B. They obeyed you, of course, even though many of your orders were not very well thought out and were more nonsensical than helpful. The soldiers carried the boxes of supplies to the armory, then got snarled at by you and had to carry them back again. You heard the grumbling and the complaints and somehow you felt sorry for them - but your head just wasn't in it.  
"With all due respect, that's total bullshit!" you heard one soldier whisper to his friend. "Why do you want the new ammo in the potato warehouse?!"  
"Hey, keep it down!" the second whispered urgently. "Stop complaining. She's is worried about Bastille and that's why she's a little unfocused. Just do what she says!"  
"Why is she worried?"  
"You know, because they-"  
Finally, you got fed up and cast a nasty look over at the two of them, who trolled over to the other soldiers, caught off guard. Even they already knew! The only clueless one was probably Bastille himself.  
"Ma'am, dinner is about to be served," a lieutenant reported to you, but you waved it off.  
"Thanks, I'll eat at the hospital," you replied, and you could feel the knowing grins of the soldiers around you. If they didn't stop doing that, you'd have them running 50 laps around the city!  
"Good evening." You turned around and saw Issho standing behind you. Pleased to see the admiral, you greeted him warmly and questioned him a bit.  
"And you're sure the straw hat is still here?" you probed.  
"I'm certain of it. He was badly wounded in his fight against Doflamingo," Issho replied, instructing you to join him at one of the tables where maps and tactical stones were spread out. You didn't want to refuse this invitation, even though your stomach was growling terribly and Bastille was probably already waiting for you.  
"I wanted to thank you," you turned to the admiral, who tilted his head a bit questioningly. "For more or less saving Bastille's skin. He was in over his head with the rebel boy."  
Issho shook his head.  
"It was right to stand in the way of that Sabo. It's his job to protect the men under his command." You sighed deeply when you heard that. Of course Fujitora was right, but still you didn't like that the redhead kept getting himself into trouble because he overestimated himself.  
"Look after him." Issho smirked slightly, seeming to know exactly what was going on inside you - it was to die for embarrassment!  
"God, everyone really seems to know that I-," you muttered a little too loudly, slapping your hand over your mouth. Issho started laughing, which made you sink into the ground even more.  
"It's very obvious.", he admitted and you groaned in annoyance. It couldn't get much more embarrassing than that! "You should start getting ready to leave. He's probably waiting."  
Grumbling, you rose, pulled the white navy coat tighter around your shoulders, and made your way to the hospital, absolutely certain that everyone was secretly making fun of you behind your back.  
"Hey. Hungry?" You stuck your head in the door, expecting to be invited in, but there was no answer. You entered Bastille's room, who appeared to be asleep. You had brought something to eat, but it was apparently superfluous. As quietly as possible, you put the basket down on the chair by the bed, lowered yourself gently to the edge of the bed, and paused for a moment. It was a very rare sight that you had not been able to enjoy for years - the last time in your training.  
You smiled slightly as you thought of that time. Bastille had always been very ambitious, a fierce and loyal young soldier all those years ago. And today he was a vice admiral, throwing himself bravely into battles, and he had learned a lot in the past years. A good tactician he had become, which could not necessarily be said of you. In things like courage and boldness, you perhaps even surpassed him, but as temperamental as he could be - you were worse. How many times had Onigomu and Momonga had to drag you out of completely unnecessary fights and make you run laps around the big training ground as punishment. Just the thought of the hot summer nights you had spent racing made you shudder. You'd think it was the other way around, but of the two of you, you were the bigger magnet for trouble and problems.  
With a heart wrenching yawn, you let yourself fall to the side, enjoying the soft mattress beneath you.  
You pulled your legs up to your body and stretched out on the bed. Careful to keep your distance from Bastille, you pulled your coat off your shoulders to use as a blanket. Another deep, heavy sigh escaped you and you were glad to see the redhead again.  
For nearly half a year now, you had missed each other on and off. When he ran into Marine headquarters, you had usually run out just before he did. It was the same the other way around and so you missed each other month after month, which always made you a little sad. You sorely missed the evenings with Ronse and Bastille, when the three of you played card games or made fun of the flabby new recruits.  
You couldn't help a snivelling grumble when you thought about those beautiful evenings. Fear crept up your neck as you toyed with the thought of how you would finally tell Bastille the truth. If you really dared to do that and he rejected you, your friendship would change forever.

Was it really worth it?


	2. I want to see emotions coloring the sky

It was very early in the morning when you woke up. In the first wonderful seconds of drowsiness you kept your eyes closed. The heat source next to you moved and only after a moment did you remember that you had simply laid down with Bastille and fallen asleep.  
Your heart stopped all the more violently when you felt a hand on your body. You wanted to open your eyes in shock, to open your mouth in astonishment, to react somehow - but you kept still and waited to see what would come next. The grip on your waist tightened a bit - until you were finally pushed out of bed with a mighty jerk. With a groan, you landed on the floor, gasping for air.  
"Hey!" you immediately protested, but Bastille only growled irritably.  
"Go find your own bed."  
"Why are you so mean..." you grumbled against the cold tiles and straightened up. You sensed he didn't feel an ounce of sympathy for you, and you pushed your lower lip forward theatrically.  
"You have a bed on the Primrose. You even have your own tent! Take that and don't sneak up on me." He was completely unmoved by your feigned indignation and that made you stop the bad acting.  
"But the mattress is much softer," you tried to talk your way out of it. The whole thing was quite embarrassing for you, because after all, you only wanted to close your eyes for a short time last night and then slip away again. And now you had spent the night at Bastille's, which, judging by the rosy color of your cheeks, was already way too much.  
"You're unbelievable, to crawl into other people's beds!" you were reproached by Bastille and he got up - immediately you were on your feet, rushing around the bed and supporting him. You pulled his arm over your shoulder and even though at first he wanted to resist your help, after the first shaky step he allowed it.  
"Come on, let's get some fresh air," you suggested, helping him down the hall to the outside. The sun was just coming up when you sat him down on one of the debris scattered throughout the city, wondering how he could be so heavy.  
"My back hurts from lying around already," the redhead growled, stretching extensively.  
"You haven't even been in this bed 24 hours," you muttered, sitting down with him. Some soldiers came by and greeted you both warmly, affirming how glad they were that Bastille was feeling better and asking if they should bring you some food. The redhead declined gratefully - he was still a bit pale under the mask - but you were chowing down on fresh waffles just half an hour later.  
"How can you eat stuff like that?" he asked, eyeing the flabby waffles in disgust. Blithely, you shrugged your shoulders and watched the wild activity in the streets. From the building in which the hospital was built, there was a good view into several streets and already early in the morning they were full of life. Residents as well as soldiers were trying to clear the rubble and you could feel that a hopeful atmosphere was over the city.  
Next to you, you felt a tremor go through Bastille's body. He still seemed to have a severe headache and at that moment you felt terribly sorry for him. As if by itself, your hand went to his temple and you turned his face toward you.  
"Shall we go back inside?" you asked, then quickly pulled your hand away. This touch had come instinctively from you and you also immediately realized that such an affectionate gesture was rather unusual among friends. Apologizing, you looked down and avoided his gaze. Hopefully he would let it go and not tease you about it!  
"Good morning!" Something tugged at your sleeve and amazed, you looked down. Was that a fairy...?  
"Ehm- Hello.", you greeted back in amazement and looked closer at the little miss. Tiny and with cute blond curls she beamed at you.  
"My name is Mansherry!" she explained, "I help the soldiers through my healing powers. Your friend there" She pointed at Bastille, who seemed too consumed by his headache to notice the dwarf woman. "He already received a little help from me yesterday."  
"That's very kind, thank you." you said, looking at the three other small figures, who were rather less cute. Were they, say, dwarves? Or really fairies? "I'm just afraid he's still in a little pain."  
"Oh my, I'm so sorry." said Mansherry in dismay, and you immediately felt sorry for having said anything. Damn, she was really cute as a button! "Please, be so good and give me your arm."  
"Of course... I think." you agreed, rolling up your sleeve. She hopped onto your lap, put her little - just so tiny - hands on your forearm, and out grew a flower, round as a dandelion. Watching in amazement, you finally accepted a glowing orb.  
"It will help him.", Mansherry assured you and you gave her a grateful smile. Something tempted you to trust the little fairy, so you thanked her and watched as the strange little troupe made its way to more sick people in the hospital.  
"Strange island." you dismissed what had just happened in amazement and turned to Bastille, who was by all appearances simply trying to block out the pain. This, of course, was not crowned with success.  
"Here." You held the glowing orb under his nose. "This will definitely help!"  
"Where did you get that all of a sudden?" he asked, and you winked at him.  
"That's my secret! Come on, it'll make you feel better!"

The morning was quickly over, and by noon Tsuru had roused you to help rebuild the city. Grumbling, you followed her harsh tone of command and set off for the center of the city, a large bunch of men in tow. The area around the Colosseum had to be cleared and the first work on the buildings was to begin. On top of that, all the badly injured civilians were being transported to the small, nearby hospital - so there was a lot to do!  
"The first squad is clearing the largest parts of the buildings. That will take some time, so meanwhile the second squad will move the injured over to the agreed meeting point. And the doctors are to keep a close watch on all the unstable patients! The rest of you make yourself useful where you can," you instructed your men, and after a salute your orders were immediately carried out. For a few minutes you looked at the soldiers, who were working with exemplary enthusiasm for the people of the destroyed city. It made you a little proud.  
"It seems to be going quite well." Issho appeared beside you and you greeted him politely.  
"Yes, indeed. I think we'll get some roads cleared so construction can begin," you confirmed. "What about the Strawhat and the other pirates involved?"  
Issho was silent for a moment, then sighed.  
"It's not right for us to go after them. But it is our duty." he said, and you heard regret in his voice. "Maybe we should let luck decide."  
You couldn't imagine what he meant, but knowing the admiral it certainly wouldn't be anything according to the rules.  
"We should still look for them," you said, your sense of duty weighing heavily on your shoulders. "They're still criminals."  
"Let's settle this over tea and a round of dice, shall we?" the admiral said, and his tone made it clear to you that you didn't have the option of refusing. So you followed him to a quiet corner where some exhausted soldiers from the morning shift were eating some lunch. They immediately moved aside when you sat down with Issho at one of the small tables.  
"Some tea, please," your superior turned to one of the young soldiers, who immediately rushed off to try and rustle up some tea in all the chaos of the city. Meanwhile, the admiral rummaged around in his inside pocket and actually pulled out a small dice. Was he really just going to decide this with luck?  
"Issho-san..." you continued, but he raised his hand to silence you. A sigh escaped you, and when the nervous soldier placed a mug of tea in front of you, you just nodded your thanks to him. Unprofessional to really settle something like this over a stupid dice, you thought to yourself. But Fujitora was your superior, so you had to play along willy-nilly.  
"Should I roll the number one, I'll be patient with the pursuit of the Strawhat for another day," he said, and you nodded mutely. So the chance that you would hunt down the pirates today was very high.  
Tensely you watched Issho roll the dice across the table - a one!  
"Oh man...", you said a little annoyed and he smirked.  
"From your tone, the Strawhat is lucky for today," he said, taking a sip of the steaming tea. "Tomorrow we'll roll the dice again. Maybe fate won't be on his side then."  
You cradled your head, yet felt impatience in your chest. Of course, the pirates had done Dressrosa a great service, but they were still pirates and nothing could be done about that.  
"You young people are always in such a hurry." The admiral seemed amused at your arguably palpable drive, and for a moment he reminded you of Tsuru. She was also the type of person to poke fun at 'youthful recklessness'. "And sometimes you just don't get anywhere."  
At that remark, the blood rushed to your ears and you sipped your tea sheepishly. It was clear what Issho was getting at, and it was a topic you were only too eager to avoid. Talking to your superior about heartbreak, no thanks!  
"Your crew was wondering where you were yesterday. They asked Tsuru and me if we'd seen you," he continued speaking and you choked on your hot tea. From coughing and embarrassment, you ran bright red and wished for a hole in the ground that would swallow you on the spot. "You've got a good squad, they were genuinely concerned."  
"Yeah, they are- they really are an exemplary crew," you mumbled between two minor coughing fits. Couldn't some emergency suddenly arise where you were desperately needed? This situation was to die for!  
Issho noticed how uncomfortable you were and, fortunately for you, changed the subject.  
"Tsuru set sail a few hours ago, she's taking in some medical supplies," he explained to you and you perked up again.  
"Why is a vice admiral collecting supplies?" you asked, frowning.  
"There have been many pirate ships sighted. They want to take over Dressrosa now that Doflamingo no longer has power over the place."  
"I see. They might intercept our supply ships," you murmured thoughtfully. "We should leave some posts here after we leave. Just for safety."  
Issho nodded and drained the rest of his tea in one go.  
"If the king agrees, yes. I will speak with him tonight. Be good enough to take command while I'm gone. I'm afraid Maynard and Bastille are both still a little bruised from the fight."  
"N-naturally." you agreed, letting your gaze wander over the street. A large tent had been erected and many medics were busily scurrying in and out. There, Princess Mansherry's healing flowers were to be distributed to the citizens of Dressrosa. There were plenty of injured people and the little dwarf was truly a blessing with her devil fruit powers! Without the glowing little orbs, it would be difficult to adequately treat all the injured and the death toll would probably have been much higher.  
"I'm counting on you." With that, Fujitora stood up, bowed his head politely to you, and said goodbye. You still felt a little uncomfortable that the admiral was so familiar with you. After all, he was your superior and one of the highest authorities in the Marines! And nevertheless you often had the feeling that he genuinely liked you. It was just like Tsuru, whom you had taken to your heart years ago. She did put you in your place from time to time, but sometimes that was just necessary. They were like family at this point and it made you smile softly.   
You decided to go back to the base camp in the late afternoon and look after things there. Until then, you would have to continue supervising the construction work - you were already terribly bored!


	3. To the point it makes me wanna cry

Bastille realized that he had not yet fully recovered. After Tsuru scared you away at noon, he had gone back to base camp, but the headache that still lingered distracted him. Eventually, he sent most of the soldiers into town and to the ports so he could get some rest and try to stifle the pain in the midday sun. Until Maynard found him.  
"Bastille, so you're fit again?" the young vice admiral inquired, but the redhead just nodded mutely. Maynard had not been a vice admiral for very long, but he was very dutiful and downright reliable. That he had snuck undercover into the Colosseum was irresponsible, but had turned out to be a great benefit. If Bastille was completely honest, he disliked Maynard for only one reason: because he was constantly trying to flirt with you.  
He could wring the young vice's neck every time he just looked at you funny! Then those little touches and the fact that he was only too happy to compliment you - that could really ruin Bastille's day. Luckily you hadn't run into each other on Dressrosa, but when you got back to base camp you would run into Maynard and then the game would start all over again.  
After all, his severe injury had brought the advantage that you gave him your undivided attention whenever possible. He enjoyed your attention very much, more than he would ever let it show on the outside. You were friends, but more importantly, colleagues. Relationships in the Marines were rightly closely guarded. Personal feelings were not allowed to get in the way of duty!  
And so, for years, the redhead remained admiring you from afar, miming the good friend and ignoring his feelings for you. Who knew if you felt the same way, in the end you would reject him and he had made a fool of himself in front of you for nothing. Silence was definitely the better solution.  
"She will be here soon, Fujitora has put her in charge," Maynard remarked tersely, and that finally got the redhead's attention. The fact that you would soon be back at the base pleased him to hear. But why did you get the command? Bastille himself was the longest serving vice admiral at Dressrosa and thus should have been given command. Not that his injury would set him back....  
Somewhat lost in thought, Bastille didn't see Maynard's skeptical look and his colleague's knowing smirk.  
"I was thinking of having dinner with our pretty Miss vice admiral tonight. Do you think she'll say yes?" the younger vice challenged, eagerly awaiting the response. Bastille tilted his head slightly, seeming to think he had misheard, and his jaws ground.  
"I have no idea," he growled low. "Maybe you should find out her _real_ name before you ask her."  
"I thought [Y/Codename] was her name?" came the surprised inquiry and Bastille rose, boiling with anger. Was Maynard really that stupid?! Or did he wanted to anger him on purpose?  
"Of course it isn't! Or do you think Akainu is really called 'Red Dog'?" Somewhat offended, Maynard stood back, but thought he heard a soft 'moron' from the redhead. 

"Good evening.", you greeted the soldiers in the camp in a friendly manner and you received only warm words and greetings. Immediately two lieutenants came forward to report and after you had nodded off the events of the day, you sent them to dinner. It was already evening and slowly fatigue crept into your bones.  
You were about to head to one of the large communal tents for dinner when someone came up behind you and cleared his throat.  
"Oh- Hello Maynard.", you greeted your colleague friendly.  
"Wouldn't you rather eat at my place today?"  
Silence.  
You were a little taken off guard by this invitation and something inside you resisted. Still, you nodded, not wanting to be rude.  
"Why not." you remarked curtly, wishing fervently that this wouldn't go wrong. Maynard, though an able vice admiral, was a little.... pushy? Yes, that word was quite accurate. He always tried to flirt with you, and even if it was more or less flattering, you tried to politely turn him down every time. But he seemed to be completely resistant to your attempts to block him.  
Listlessly you poked at your food, nodding to Maynard's overly adventurous tales of his exploits and wondering how a man could be so sure of himself. He wasn't a bad man, really! It's just that his manner was just not for you to bear. How you wished you could be with Bastille and eat with him!  
"What's your name, anyway? So, your real one. Not your codename."  
A bit irritated, you finally looked at him.  
"You... don't even know my name?" you asked, and he nodded. That was enough. Abruptly you stood up and gave him an angry look.  
"I think I've eaten enough. Have a nice evening." Anger surrounded you like a gloomy fog and this rebuff was more than clear. Annoyed at such brazen behavior, you stormed out of the canteen tent, growling a few angry expletives. What did that idiot think he was doing, not even knowing your name, and then trying to pull a stunt like that!  
"Stupid asshole.", you muttered and made your way to your ship, the Primrose. There you would finally have your peace from this moron and maybe finally be able to think about how you were going to tell Bastille the truth. If you wanted to - that wasn't quite certain yet. You jumped back and forth in your mind between a happy ending and a terrible love tragedy, which made you despair even more with every minute you thought about it.  
Right next to your beautiful ship was the Taurus, Bastille's huge battleship. A cursory glance at the bow made you take another closer look, and you spotted the redhead sitting on the railing, staring out to sea.  
"Hey!" you called out, waving. You hurried down the gangplank, up the bridge to the ship, and took a quick look around the deck. Most of the crew seemed to be at dinner, with only a few of Bastille's people scurrying around the ship, and that gave you the confidence to talk to him honestly.

"Bastille." Gently you put a hand on his arm. He didn't seem surprised, so he had noticed you from the beginning, and you sat down with him on the railing.  
"Maynard insisted on eating with me," you told him, smirking a little at your angry lapse. "He doesn't know my name! Just asked me cheekily about it."  
"I know. He told me beforehand." the redhead growled and you frowned. He knew about it? Then I guess he didn't seem to have a problem with the fact that you had dinner with the other vice. Maybe you really shouldn't confess your feelings to him. It was probably better that way, even though your stomach tightened painfully. Disappointment rolled over you in a cold wave, but what did you expect? A happy ending and the 'they lived happily ever after'?! How could anyone be as naive as you...?  
"Are you still in pain?" you asked softly, trying not to let on. Bastille shook his head and you knew he was lying.  
"If you like Maynard, I can live with that, you know."  
You looked up, surprised by his words. Anger boiled up inside you, fueled by heartbreak and bitter disappointment. So he really didn't like you in that particular way, even worse - was he trying to set you up with that other vice?! With an annoyed snort, you stood up and wordlessly turned away from him to make your way to your own ship. You had no right to be angry with him just because he didn't return your feelings, and yet you were.  
Somewhat puzzled by your anger, Bastille looked after you, but said nothing either.  
Fine, let him have it that way!

A while after you left, the redhead sighed. He didn't understand what he had done wrong again. He had written you off, resigned himself to the fact that you didn't love him. That you had accepted Maynard's invitation was proof enough of your exclusively friendly feelings. You should be happy with that idiot!  
Bastille noticed that he was getting angry again with the young vice admiral, but he swallowed his anger with difficulty. He respected you and your decisions, so he would not try to win you over. If you wanted it that way, you should have it that way!  
He overheard the quiet conversation of two soldiers who were busy re-knotting the ropes on the mast.  
"...And apparently she was crying, too."  
"Really, cried? I've never heard of [Y/N] crying before. She's such a tough cookie after all."  
"It's a shame Tsuru isn't due back until the day after tomorrow. She'd know what to do."  
The redhead became thoughtful. He hadn't often witnessed you crying, so it must have been something very upsetting. Maybe Maynard had dumped you - he should talk to you.  
Bastille jumped off the railing of the Taurus, landed with a leap on the jetty, and made his way to the dock of the Primrose.

You just couldn't hold back the first tears before you reached your cabin. After the door closed behind you, you started crying like a waterfall. You didn't know such emotional outbursts from yourself, but considering that your love would never be returned, it was understandable. And yet you were ashamed of every tear that rolled down your cheeks and left little stains on your top. You wiped your eyes with the back of your hand, scolded yourself and tried to stop acting like a love-struck teenager. But all this did not help to stop the tears, on the contrary, they only became more. A persistent hiccup made it worse, until finally you were just a sighing, whimpering pile of misery.  
You slipped the white coat off your shoulders, threw it over the chair at your desk, and threw yourself belly-down on the bed. The springs of the mattress groaned under your weight and you pulled your legs close to your body, clinging to the pillow as if to a life preserver.  
There was a knock, but you didn't respond, should Bastille and Maynard take care of the camp, you just wanted to pull the blanket over your head and disappear at that moment.  
"Come on, I know you're holed up in there."  
Bastille? No, he was the last person you wanted to see!  
"Get lost!!" you shouted, your voice muffled by your pillow.  
"What are you blubbering about now?" he continued. "Did the idiot give you a runaround, or what? I can't imagine, the way he's panting after you!" It hurt the redhead terribly to talk to you about it, but he just wanted to be a good friend. Even if it hurt.  
You, on the other hand, thought you had misheard. He thought that would be your problem? A rejection from that idiot Maynard?! You jumped up and rushed to the door to open it. Bastille looked at you in surprise, leaning against the wall of the hallway with his arms crossed, and seemed honestly surprised that you had opened the door. He felt a small twinge in his chest when he saw your teary eyes.  
"You're my problem!" you sneered at him. "It's your fucking fault! Now get the hell off my ship!!!"  
With a loud slam, you rammed the door back into the lock, threw yourself back on your bed, and cursed the stubborn, redheaded jerk.


	4. Get me shaken up

The morning came much earlier than you would have liked. Sleepily you lifted your head from the pillow, pulled the blanket close to you and cursed the new day already. After a smacking yawn, you got up, wrapping the blanket around your body, and staggered into your small bathroom. The emphasis was on small, because at sea there was not much room for spacious comfort. But as long as it had a shower you were happy with it.  
Slowly, still very sleepy, you got rid of your clothes and turned on the water. As always, it was freezing cold at first, but then gradually became warm. With a contented sigh you enjoyed the hot water on your skin and tried to wash away the emotional chaos of the previous day.  
How were you supposed to face Bastille now? You had pretty much ended this realtionship in any romantic way and that clearly. Surely he was now angry at you, so you decided to stay away from him for today. In a few days you would sail back to the headquarters of the navy anyway and then the thing would be through by then - hopefully. Since you two kept missing each other at headquarters anyway, everything would be _just wonderful_.  
Not really wonderful, you thought sadly, and the corners of your mouth pulled down a little, while a painful lump sat in your throat. How could a man cause you such pain?  
Freshly showered and in new clothes, you put your huge coat loosely over your shoulders and sighed deeply before walking out of your cabin. Hand on the door handle you paused, trying to push yesterday's feelings to the back of your mind. This was going to be a tough day.

"Fujitora. Good morning." you greeted your superior, who was sitting in base camp with his morning tea. To your relief, Bastille and Maynard were both nowhere to be seen, so you joined the admiral.  
"Good morning." he greeted you back. "I was just about to roll the dice, so you're right on time."  
Ah well, his stupid dice game....  
"Alright.", you agreed, just to be able to distract yourself a bit. Hopefully it wouldn't be the number one, because then you could pass your bad mood by chasing some pirates!  
The dice rolled across the table, bounced around on the wood, almost caught on an edge and - damn!  
"One, I don't believe it..." you grumbled in annoyance, groaning slightly. So this was going to be another horrible day of rubble and emotional disaster. What was the best way for you to wriggle out of it?  
"You seem very stressed today. Might it have something to do with last night's drama?" asked Issho, and you winced slightly.  
"So it's already made the rounds?" you asked dejectedly, sighing heavily. "I'm very sorry. I know I was in charge and I failed you."  
"I can't deny that it wasn't very smart of you to pick a fight with Bastille on the night you were in charge of the camp," the admiral admitted to you and you nodded. He had the right to be mad at you, of course, because it was rash and stupid to put your feelings above duty.  
"You should talk to him," Issho then continued, with an unusually fatherly tone. "I'm sure he has no idea what he did wrong and is just as miserable as you are."  
"I highly doubt that," you snorted, propping your chin up with your palms. You half lay across the small wooden table and wanted to lie on the floor, depressed and defiant. "He said I was welcome to go out with Mayn- with other men, that it wouldn't bother him. What do we conclude from that? He doesn't feel the same way I do."  
Wow, were you really discussing this with your supervisor right now?  
But that's exactly who shook his head impatiently and sipped his tea.  
"You young people can be so blind."  
"What does that have to do with blind?" you asked, no less impatiently. "It's just not meant to be. Period."  
"Why don't you talk to Bastille first? He's on assignment east of the palace, organizing the cleanup there. I'm sure he could use your help."  
You frowned and snorted reluctantly.  
"Is that an order?" you inquired cautiously, and Issho shook his head.  
"No, it isn't. Just some well-intentioned advice from an old man."  
That had hit home. By referring to his age, he made you feel guilty. Of course, he was older and, more importantly, much wiser than you, but what did he know about such problems? You sighed.  
"All right. But I'm only going there to help him! No silly feelings talk."

Defiantly you walked through the streets and you had to marvel a bit - within two days many of the large debris had already been removed and the first work on the houses had begun. But the closer you got to the palace, the quieter it became in the streets. Almost as if the people of Dressrosa didn't dare to come close to the former residence of Doflamingo. Did people maybe believe in evil spirits?  
"Oh dear. I have to go further that way..." you mumbled, engrossed in a map of the city. The streets were full of twists and turns, small alleys, and you got lost really fast. Unfortunately for you, you had taken a wrong turn and were now looking for the right way, strolling through the empty streets. It was really quiet in this part of the city.  
Too quiet.  
"Hey! What-" Right in front of you, from one alley to another, some people with heavy bags and backpacks were rushing. Pirates!  
"Oh shit! A vice admiral!!!" you heard one of them shout, and immediately they trolled into the shadows of some buildings.  
"Oh no you don't-!" you hissed, delighted to have a distraction from this terrible day. Immediately you began to run after them, sprinting around the next corner - they just disappeared down another side street - and following them as fast as you could.  
It was ridiculous. By the time they turned the next corner, you were on their heels again, and you began to suspect that they were just trying to shake you off. They would be pretty stupid, if they would lead you directly to their hiding place. Slowly it got too much for you, so with a few powerful sentences you were on one of the roofs and could catch up with the pirates.  
"Gotcha!" you growled, jumping off the roof - and standing in mid-air. "What the- A barrier...?"  
You watched the pirates escape from beneath you, and wild, indomitable rage boiled up inside you. First that disaster yesterday, and then those damn pirates slipped through your fingers too! Issho would probably consider you incompetent and recommend Sakazui to demote you. You couldn't let that happen!  
Angrily, you kept kicking the barrier, but it wouldn't even get a little scratch. What was it made of that could withstand your every attack? And what's more, if you kept running, it would follow you!  
"Get! Lost! You! Stupid! Barrier!" you clamored, trudging up more vigorously with each word to make this transparent obstacle give way - and falling the last bit to the ground. Though you managed to land safely on both feet, the pirates were over the hills. Angrily, you stamped your foot and gritted your teeth. Wonderful, now you could report that the damn criminals had escaped from you.  
"Shit!" you cursed loudly and turned towards the small alley you came from. The second you turned around, all you saw was a massive giant in the alley - how did he even fit in there - with a steel beam in his hand, lunging wide to strike.  
You just managed to pull your arms protectively in front of your face when the heavy metal beam caught you with full force and sent you crashing into the nearest building.  
Pain numbed your thoughts and around you it was dark and cold. Your thoughts were blurry, hard to grasp and your consciousness was lost in darkness again. Several times you woke up, trying to free yourself from the rubble of the destroyed building, but heavy pieces of wall and more steel beams were on top of you, tying you to the ground. You tasted blood in your mouth and even though the giant blood in your veins had probably saved you from the worst injuries, it hurt terribly. Your left arm was probably broken, and judging by the sharp pain in your thigh, you either had a deep cut there or something sharp had drilled into your flesh.  
The armor haki had saved you from the worst of it, but you hadn't been able to react as quickly as the pirates' attack hit you. And that was only because you had let yourself be distracted by that stupid argument. Never in your life would you have fallen victim to such an obvious attack, if only your thoughts hadn't been on that stupid fight all morning!

"Vice admiral Bastille, one of the buildings to the south has collapsed!" a young soldier reported, and the redhead looked up from his map of the city.  
"I thought all the buildings had been secured?" he inquired. The soldier nodded.  
"We checked all the buildings!"  
He sighed deeply. His mood was at its lowest point and now some rioting idiots who thought it was funny to demolish the houses even further. As if he had nothing better to do!  
"Never mind. Take care of it tomorrow," he growled. After all the trouble, he didn't have the slightest desire to worry about such trifles. Tomorrow was another day!

Was it minutes? Or hours? You didn't know. Little by little, you had begun to peel yourself out of the pile of rubble. Inch by inch you pulled yourself out from under the heavy metal beams, gritting your teeth and hoping that the pain would ease once you were out.  
With each attempt to free yourself, you lost more blood - until you finally crawled out from under the building with a final, desperate jerk. Your left forearm was broken and with your right hand you carefully felt your right leg. A piece of metal was sticking out of your thigh and you realized that the way to the East Port was going to be horrible. But waiting for help here was pointless, no one would find you anytime soon. You had no choice but to make your way alone.  
With difficulty you shimmied along the walls of the still intact houses. Every step was a little hell. Your muscles trembled and you left a clear trail of blood. You didn't dare to pull the sharp-edged piece of metal out of the wound, because you had nothing to bind it with.  
Hold on, you thought desperately. It is not far now!  
The wind carried the bustling noise of busy soldiers to you, so you were not more than a few minutes away from the eastern port. Few soldiers came your way, nor did they look at the hunched figure in the shadows of the houses. They hurried busily through the streets, in small squads that had no eye for you. You didn't manage to call for help, so you trudged on until you finally saw the first white navy tents. Slowly, trembling, you shuffled between the tents to the center of the camp, leaving a bloody handprint on the solid white fabric, and a wave of relief swept over you as your exhausted eyes caught the wild red hair.  
"Bastille-," you forced out with all your effort. He didn't turn around, but seemed to recognize your voice immediately.  
"Ah, so you're talking to me again, are you?" he merely growled, arms crossed and visibly offended. You couldn't take another step, needing all your strength to even stay on your feet. The world was spinning around you and any moment you would pass out.  
"Bastille... Please-" you pleaded weakly.  
"For you to talk to me like that, what did I ever do to you." he continued grimly, finally turning to you. Immediately he froze in the face of your bloodied form writhing in pain, but recovered his composure just in time to take a hasty step toward you and catch you. You fell powerlessly into his arms, your thoughts only a confused mixture of pain and relief to have finally found help.


	5. Tangled up

"Now you have to visit me again," you mumbled weakly, in the big bed of the military hospital where you had visited the redhead only yesterday. What a silly, ironic turn of phrase.  
Bastille was not very amused by your remark, sitting on the chair next to the bed and seemed to be in a very bad mood. You stirred, but a throbbing pain moved through your leg.  
"Ouch-," you hissed, letting any further movement go.  
"Your arm is already healed. Your leg will be tomorrow.", he said to you and you clearly heard the grim undertone. Carefully you lifted the formerly broken arm, moving it a little - it still hurt, but it couldn't be compared to the pain before.  
"How long was I out?" you asked weakly.  
"A few hours. What happened, anyway? Showing up at the docks covered in blood and collapsing."  
"I was chasing some pirates and- Ah, I barely remember-they hit me pretty hard," you told me, trying to cling to the dark memories. "I ended up crashing into a house I think."  
"Oh yeah, you did." Now his tone was a little amused after all. "Tore the whole building down."  
There was a strained silence between you for a moment, until finally the two of you couldn't hold back the laughter.  
"Geez, that last happened to me when I was training with Ronse back in the day. He threw me into the equipment shed, remember?"  
"Garp was so mad!" the redhead recalled, and you nodded eagerly. The tension fell away from you as if the last few days hadn't even existed. It was nice to be able to laugh with your best friend again.  
"Ohh and remember when Ronse tried to ask Hanami out on a date?" you asked. Bastille snorted in amusement in response and shook her head.  
"She punched him so hard he couldn't train for a week."  
Only too gladly you thought of the time of your training. It had been a wonderful time full of adventure and how much fun you had then! You sorely missed those simpler years.  
"My favorite was the year we snuck into the summer party... We squeezed out of the base window and we had a great evening together, the three of us," you dreamed, thinking about the delicious ice cream and fireworks. "That was my first summer party!"  
"The yukata looked so good on you..." Bastille said. "And you had flowers in your hair. What was that again... They were purple."  
"Lilacs." you sighed, "I love the smell of lilacs. You picked them off a tree and put them in my hair."  
Silence fell between you as the two of you thought of that one, beautiful evening. Even then you had liked Bastille, even had a little crush on him, and that tender feeling had become a part of you. That you loved the redhead belonged to you, was not to be thought away and this feeling would accompany you forever, wherever your path might lead.  
Your counterpart seemed to be somewhat lost in thought as well, and so you enjoyed the silence between you, each lost in your own memories of that evening.  
"Fujitora will send you back to headquarters in the morning."  
Surprised, you looked up, snapped out of your blissful thoughts.  
"Why is that?" you asked Bastille. Anger rumbled in your stomach - were you really so unreliable that the admiral had to send you away? "Is Issho-san that angry with me?"  
"More like concerned," your colleague corrected you, folding his arms in front of his chest. "Besides, when Tsuru docks again tomorrow for Doflamingo's transport, there will be four vice admirals here. It's clear he'll send you home first, after all, you have a hole in your leg."  
He had a point, you admitted to yourself. In your current condition, you were rather useless and might as well sail back home to recuperate there. Still, you sighed in disappointment, sat up, and began fiddling with the hem of the blanket.  
"So... What are you going to do?" you asked cautiously.  
"I'll wait until Doflamingo is taken away and then I'll accompany the convoy to Impel Down," was Bastille's answer. A stab went through your chest and whether it was disappointment or anger you could hardly tell at that moment. Of course you hoped that he would follow you to the headquarters. Yes, but why, really? Wasn't the love thing off the table? You were determined not to run after him like a teenager in heat anymore - so where did your desire for togetherness at headquarters come from?  
"Okay.", it only came over your lips, although you wanted to tell him much more at that moment. That you were sorry for having yelled at him like that. And that you weren't angry with him anymore either. But it only became a weak 'Okay.'  
"I'll try not to miss you next time." Your eyes moved up from the washed out bedding to the redhead, and you knew for a fact that he was just saying that out of embarrassment. Because he knew that at this point you would once again be saying goodbye for some time.  
"... Okay.", you repeated and lay down on your side, the blanket pulled up over your shoulders and with your back to him. A very clear sign that this conversation was over. Bastille apparently didn't dare to say anything else, so he left the room without a word.

It was almost a week later when Ronse docked and your boredom at headquarters was finally over. Waving from afar, you greeted your colleague and friend, who just shook his head at your enthusiasm. The giant with the heavy iron mask was, as expected, a rather taciturn man who, unlike Bastille, didn't let you walk all over him. But for years he had been at your side with advice and support, and when you had worries, you could always tell them to the man of few words. At least he was a good listener!  
To your regret, the farewell on Dressora had been short and disappointing. Issho had said goodbye to you formally, Tsuru was still at sea, and Bastille hadn't even shown up when you were about to leave. That alone fueled your anger to the point where you would have loved to yell at him over the transponder snail!  
"You won't believe what happened on Dressrosa!" you were already shouting at Ronse, yet you hadn't even reached the dock yet. His shoulders slumped a bit - he knew very well that he was going to have to listen to a lot of whining now. Absolutely right, because you immediately grabbed him by the coat and pulled him behind you, to the side of the training area and dropped down on one of the walls. Hard stone may not have been the most comfortable place for a coffee date, but you just had to tell him!  
And that's what you did: in all details you described the events to your annoyed colleague, leaving out no annoying detail, until he finally cut you off with a wave of his hand.  
"That you two still can't get it together! Just unbelievable!"  
"Hey, what are you talking about?" you retorted, a little upset. He should confirm your anger and not side with Tsuru and Fujitora!  
"Okay, listen. I really tried to stay out of it," Ronse said. "But the way you two are obsessively looking for reasons not to talk about your feelings for each other, it's just annoying. And ridiculous at that."  
Outraged, you opened your mouth.  
"I'm not obsessively looking for reasons!" you immediately protested. "Bastille has made it clear that he has no romantic feelings for me!"  
"God damn it... Did you even ask him directly? You know perfectly well that sometimes he's painfully oblivious."  
"No, I didn't ask him," you admitted, doubt welling up inside you. You really hadn't asked the redhead that directly. For one thing, it was kind of embarrassing, and for another, there was the fear of rejection.  
Ronse sighed deeply, rose from the wall and put his hands in the pockets of his pants.  
"Maybe you should finally do that. I just can't listen to your whining anymore." He left you alone, thoughtful and a little confused. Was it really that simple? Did you just have to ask the redhead?

You stood at the dock of the Taurus, which had dropped anchor only a few minutes ago, jittery and prancing from one foot to the other. You had taken Ronse's words to heart and were glad that Bastille had finally arrived at headquarters. The tension was eating away at your nerve center, which was already very thin.  
"I need to talk to you!" you intercepted Bastille immediately, before he had even left the Taurus.  
"How's the leg?" he countered with a question and you nodded impatiently.  
"The leg is doing fine. Now come on." You grabbed him by the sleeve of his white coat, dragging him behind you to the deserted end of the dock.  
"Now don't drag me around like that!" he complained, but you stopped behind some tall crates first. Here no one could see you and your death-defying action picked up speed. Your heart was beating up to your neck and you were convinced that you could feel your pulse up to the tips of your hair. You swallowed, but gathered all your courage. It was now or never!  
"Do you love me?" The question sounded silly, bold, impertinent, and almost stupid to your own ears. A simple question, but one that left Bastille completely speechless. He hesitated for a moment, completely caught off guard by this direct question to him.  
"I-! I mean- why are you asking me that?" He evaded.  
"Answer my question." you pressed on stubbornly, though your voice broke slightly. "Bastille, do you love me?"  
Slowly, uncertainly, he nodded.  
"I do."  
"Oh, thank God!" You threw yourself into his arms, overjoyed to have this weight off your shoulders. You pressed your face to his chest and felt his arms wrap around you. All that arguing and uncertainty, all for nothing - damn, why had you let it come to this! So much precious time wasted...  
"Can you please tell me what this is all about?" His tone was not angry, but honestly confused. He held you tightly in his arms and you also pressed a little closer to him.  
"I've been trying to tell you for years that I love you!" It felt so damn good to finally be able to let those words out of you. You wanted to scream them from the roof of the headquarters!  
"And why didn't you ever tell me?" he asked, upset.  
"Well, you didn't tell me either!" you replied, looking up at him. You released one hand from his back, pushed the mask up a bit and stood on your tiptoes to kiss him. Everything inside you cheered with joy, happiness and relief.  
After a brief, yet incredible moment, you broke away from him and leaned your forehead against his chest.  
"What took us so long.", you mumbled, unable to hold back a laugh. "Tsuru, Ronse, and even Fujitora have talked down to me so many times."  
"Not just on you." said Bastille, still refusing to let go of you. "The things I've had to listen to from Ronse..."  
"Wait and see what he says when we tell him we've finally worked this out!"


End file.
